THE WHO Debut Album (mono + DeLuxe Edition)

Original released on LP Brunswick LAT 8616 (mono)

(UK 1965, December 3)

An explosive debut, and the hardest mod pop recorded by anyone. At the time of its release, it also had the most ferociously powerful guitars and drums yet captured on a rock record. Pete Townshend's exhilarating chord crunches and guitar distortions threaten to leap off the grooves on "My Generation" and "Out in the Street"; Keith Moon attacks the drums with a lightning, ruthless finesse throughout. Some Maximum R&B influence lingered in the two James Brown covers, but much of Townshend's original material fused Beatlesque hooks and power chords with anthemic mod lyrics, with "The Good's Gone," "Much Too Much," "La La La Lies," and especially "The Kids Are Alright" being highlights. "A Legal Matter" hinted at more ambitious lyrical concerns, and "The Ox" was instrumental mayhem that pushed the envelope of 1965 amplification with its guitar feedback and nonstop crashing drum rolls. While the execution was sometimes crude, and the songwriting not as sophisticated as it would shortly become, The Who never surpassed the pure energy level of this record.

The history behind the making of "My Generation" is an interesting one.  Initially, The Who recorded an album comprised mostly of cover material, the songs they had been playing in their live set.  Before the album’s scheduled release date, June 1965, advanced copies were forwarded to the music press for review.  When the critics reacted negatively to the lack of original material The Who’s management team, Kit Lambert and Chris Stamp, along with producer, Shel Tamly, postponed the release and asked Pete Townshend come up with some more songs.  What Pete returned with was solid gold and The Who’s debut LP, "My Generation", was released six months later.  It’s kinda strange when you think about it, but here’s one instance where we may owe music critics some thanks.